Picking out just the right corporate Christmas gift idea can be a pretty difficult task. After all, what you get for your employees says a lot about what kind of boss you are. When I was coming up in the world of business, people tended to get very formal office Christmas gifts. The boss would buy senior members expensive wine, junior executives slightly less expensive wine, and everyone else Christmas ornaments, or other presents that reflected their low status in the company hierarchy.
Nowadays, that approach is not nearly that popular. In the modern workplace, after all, we are supposed to pretend that we are all equals – members of the same team, as it were. Although no one exactly believes this, it makes relationships between management and the workers easier and less strained. As such, the best approach is to have a corporate Christmas gift idea that is appropriate for everyone. You can privately get something nice for some of your senior partners, but it should be done in as inconspicuous a manner as possible. Publicly showing favoritism only invites trouble, particularly when you can already indicate which employees you favor through Christmas bonuses.
One of my personal favorite corporate Christmas gift ideas is to send everyone home with a bottle of Bristol Cream sherry. It is one of the most delightful wines you can have in the winter, and it is relatively inexpensive. If your office is facing hard times, however, you might want to consider going cheapter. If you can have your company print out personalized custom Christmas gifts, you can get away with a very cheap holiday present. Last year, for example, we gave everyone a candy basket. There were peanut butter cups, mints, and little chocolate Santas inside. The Christmas wrapping paper was printed with the company logo, and every single one had a personalized greeting card attached. It cost less than three dollars per basket, and it still seemed to make most of our employees feel appreciated.
Of course, you can always go with one of the old standbys. An ornament is probably the most classic corporate Christmas gift idea there is. It is pretty, inexpensive, and useful year after year. You can get a pewter Christmas tree ornament, a glass bauble, a miniature nutcracker, or whatever else might strike your fancy. Any of these will make a fine corporate Christmas gift idea without breaking the company bank!